How Rams engineered FMIA's "Underrated trade of the weekend"

A greater-than-expected number of LA Rams fans did not seem the least bit pleased with the Rams' willingness to trade back in the 2023 NFL Draft. And sometimes, a team really can outthink itself by doing so. Particularly when that team is a perennial NFL Playoff team. In those situations, the LA Rams do not need more players as much as specific upgrades to their established roster. Trading out of a spot where the team can get a starter, rotational player, or simply a competitor who makes the 53-man roster over trading back for multiple practice squad players is not a wise use of draft picks.

But there are times when that willingness to trade back makes complete sense One such scenario when that applies is when an NFL team enters the annual NFL Draft with 11 picks but with 46 vacant roster spots. Now, it's not so much about upgrading one specific position in the NFL Draft as much as it is filling a barren NFL roster with players who can compete at the NFL level.

That is where the LA Rams found themselves in the 2023 NFL Draft. Unlike some drafts in which there is a steep drop between those NFL-caliber players to a group of 'iffy-at-best" rookies, the 2023 NFL Draft seemed to be composed of a gradual decline at many of the positions that the team needed to address.

Late round drafted players are certain to be Rams

The fact that the LA Rams entered the 2023 NFL Draft after a 5-12 season was not the determining factor in my mind. Rather, it was that fact that the team entered the draft with less than 69 players under contract. What number of players under contract did the LA Rams have when the draft started? Just 44 players.

So what is so special about 69 players? That is the number of 53 players on the active roster, plus 16 players who will eventually make the practice squad. And the difference between the number of players who would become LA Rams through or after the draft was not the 11 picks that the LA Rams possessed, but 25 players. That number is far greater than the 11, or even the eventual 14, picks that the Rams owned.

But why is that even a big deal? Why not get the best in the draft, and then just load up the bus with undrafted rookie free agents (UDFAs), or as the Rams now refer to them CFAs (collegiate free agents)? Because players who do not hear their names called out in the draft can sign with any NFL team. That means bidding wars, prospect loyalty, family and friend pressure, and a host of other variables that can lure a coveted player to sign with another team.

Underrated Trade of the Weekend breakdown

How did the LA Rams engineer the "Underrated trade of the weekend" in Peter King's view? He simply broke down the components to the trade that the LA Rams made with the New York Giants and followed each pick to their corresponding player. Here is what that trade looked like in terms of draft picks:

Okay. One team trades back while another team trades up. So what? Well, that's why I love reading Peter King's weekly Football Moring in America column. You see, King followed the trade all the way out to the players in question. Here is the excerpt about the Rams trade with the Giants:

King's masterclass in draft trade dynamics

"Underrated trade of the weekend. The Rams, without a fourth-round pick entering the draft, sent a third-rounder, 73rd overall, to the Giants for picks 89 and 128. It’s number 128 that was the reason, but all were significant. At 73, the Giants took the fastest good receiver in the draft, Tennessee’s Jalin Hyatt, after missing out on wideouts in round one. At 89, the Rams began to replenish their depleted stock of defensive linemen, taking PFF darling Kobie Turner from Wake Forest.

Turner modeled his game after Aaron Donald, who texted his approval to Ram personnel people after the pick. At 128, GM Les Snead’s private passion player in this draft, Georgia QB Stetson Bennett, was the pick. The Rams expect the two-time national-champ QB to earn the backup job to Matthew Stafford in camp.

Stafford’s missed 16 starts in the last four seasons, so a solid backup for low money is a big piece—and a backup who’s won the biggest games in college football is a bonus, even at 5-11." - Per Peter King in his Nuggets of the Week section

Now, here is what the Rams trade with the Giants looks like in terms of players:

Now, after placing players' names into the mix rather than just generic picks, do you feel any better? The sentence that hooked me is this one:

"Stafford’s missed 16 starts in the last four seasons,"

So in my mind, getting a viable backup quarterback for the 2023 NFL season was not really an option, it was a must. And it was not a shock, as even we could sense the interest in a quarterback by the Rams on Day 3 of the 2023 NFL Draft.

Payoff for drafting Stetson Bennett may be better than you think

Okay, the LA Rams just grabbed a buy who will likely spend the majority of his rookie season on the bench. But that is not necessarily a bad thing. In fact, it's a very good thing simply from the practical perspective that for every week Bennett is on the bench, LA Rams starting veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford is playing.

And the backup quarterback from his Alma Mater, former Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett, has another week to observe, analyze, and learn from one of the NFL's best quarterbacks playing today. Bennett is a quarterback who loves to improvise, extend plays, and take his shots downfield. In fact, former Rams legend Kurt Warner does a master job analyzing Bennett's game, and he seems to love Stetson Bennett's fit in this LA Rams offense.

Investing in backup QB is just good business

The LA Rams have treated the backup quarterback role as pocket change. It has not gotten the attention or the investment necessary to make it work for the team. And, curiously, the Rams are missing out on a great source for future draft capital by neglecting the position. Here is what it comes down to:

If so many NFL teams poach the LA Rams coaching staff to grab a chance of grafting the Rams offensive strategy into their own football organization, imagine the market for the quarterback who knows and runs that offense, and wins in it?

I'm not suggesting that the Rams trade Stetson Bennett at any time in his rookie contract. But if the LA Rams front office is okay with letting so many other players walk away in free agency for future awarded compensatory draft picks, then they are completely missing the mother lode of comp picks that could come their way by developing viable quarterbacks today and letting them sign monster contracts elsewhere.

In Peter King's opinion, the LA Rams engineered FMIA's "Underrated trade of the weekend." And I tend to agree with him. But traveling that line of thinking even further, I am starting to appreciate this pick even more. Will it all pan out for the Rams? Perhaps, and perhaps not. But I love the direction that this team is taking right now.

I like the fit of Stetson Bennet in the Rams quarterback room. He has the ability to deliver in a pinch like Indianapolis Colts quarterback, Garner Mindshew, has done in his NFL career. That is simply not something the Rams have had on their roster for many years.